“Do all the good you can, by all the means you can, in all the ways you can, in all the places you can, at all the times you can, to all the people you can, as long as you ever can.” -John Wesley
Since joining the Junior League of New Orleans in 2007, Holly Adkins Paczak has cultivated an understanding of community projects that make her well-suited for the Community Council Director of the Junior League of New Orleans. She will coordinate, develop and maintain JLNO programs that further the organization’s mission and focus area of Advancing the Wellbeing of Women. While she has served primarily on JLNO’s Community Council, her time as Vice-Chair for the Project Evaluation Committee provided a deeper understanding of our projects from the members’ perspectives. While serving on the Board, she hopes to facilitate growth in a way that enhances our members’ involvement and experience while supporting and servicing our community partners.
Holly spent three years on the Judgement Call Committee and one year each on the Education Support Services, Freret Neighborhood and Rebuilding Together committees. All of these provided her the opportunity to engage in community service and build relationships. She has worked with children and families from all walks of life, giving them experiences and assistance to place the next block in the foundation of their life. As a training organization, JLNO provided Holly with skills that she wouldn’t necessarily have learned elsewhere. From using technology to planning finances and budgets to managing teams and resources, she consistently gleans nuggets of knowledge from any JLNO interaction. Community shifts, committee meetings, joint council and general membership meetings all provide a never-ending opportunity to connect with talented, creative and determined women.
Working at the LSU Health Sciences Human Development Center, Holly is a Project Coordinator for the Teams Intervening to Reach all Students (TIERS) Group. She is a school psychologist, but her daily work involves technical assistance, coaching, and direct support to schools and school districts to improve academic and behavioral systems, supports and interventions. She helps in the support and learning of the adults, so that students have better outcomes. She has worked for two national technical assistance centers funded by the United States Office of Special Education Programs – the National Center on Special Education Accountability Monitoring and the Data Accountability Center – and as a consultant in Alaska, Illinois, Minnesota, Mississippi and Tennessee as well as in Milwaukee Public Schools and Seattle Public Schools. While in Alaska, she worked with two remote schools on St. Lawrence Island in the Bering Sea. In addition, Holly has made presentations at national, state and local levels on multi-tiered systems of support and positive behavioral interventions and support.
As a student at Mississippi State University, Holly received a Bachelor of Science in Educational Psychology, a Master of Science in School Psychometry and an Education Specialist in School Psychology. Her Ed.S. degree included a one year internship in the Recovery School District, which is how she moved to New Orleans.
Holly spends her free time reading, from fiction to biographies, industrial organization to technology, education to social science. She also enjoys traveling with her husband, Brad, and daughter Helena (3). Both of her grandmothers inspire her and embody the spirit of ingenuity and perseverance. They were in charge of families and pursued educational and career opportunities at a time when women primarily served in the home. They exemplified service to their community, love of family and friends, determination, and contentment.
